History of the Laboratory of Cancer Chemoprevention and Oncopharmacology

Historically speaking, the Laboratory is closely connected with the laboratory of experimental cancer therapeutics, which was established at the Leningrad Cancer Institute by Professor L.F. Larionov in 1945. It was the first laboratory in the country which carried out search for cancer drugs within the antimetabolite and haloidalkylamine group of cancer medications, using animals with experimental tumors. V.G. Nemets and L.F. Larionov conducted a pre-clinical study of the anticancer chemotherapeutic drug embikhin that was later introduced into clinical practice, for which they were awarded the State Prize. Up to the present day embikhin is an effective anticancer chemotherapeutic drug which is used in clinical practice.

In 1951, the laboratory was reorganized and became the laboratory of experimental oncology with a new head - Professor L.M. Shabad. In 1959, Professor L.M. Shabad was replaced by Professor and merited scientist N.V. Lazarev. In 1965, the laboratory was renamed and became the laboratory of medical approaches to prevention and treatment of malignant neoplasms. The Laboratory introduced into clinical practice such cancer drugs as pentoxyl and methyluracil, and some adaptogens.

In 1971, Professor and merited scientist V.A. Filov became the new head of the laboratory. The laboratory worked closely with laboratory of organic synthesis under the leadership of Professor B.A. Ivin. Later the two laboratories were united and became the laboratory of organic synthesis, oncopharmacology and toxicology. The laboratory synthesized and tested the anticancer activity of more than 800 new potentially active anticancer compounds of various families, in particular derivatives of purines and pyrimidines, aziridinyltriazines, organosilicon compounds, oxazines and triazine. Two new drugs were introduced into clinical practice – chromlymphotrust and sehydrin. To this day chromlymphotrust is a superb drug both for roentgenolymphography and chromlymphography. Sehydrin (H2N-N+H3 HSO4–) is a new generation anticancer drug. The clinical trials of sehydrin and its subsequent use to treat solid tumors at various body sites and lymphomas of final stages and exhausted specific treatment options have shown that the drug yields positive effects in 40% of all patients. The main clinical response to the drug manifests in the stabilization of the disease process, which, as a result, is often less prominent with a possibility to return to the initial treatment plan. By using streamlined synthesis based on the idea of tuning the hydrophilic-lipophilic balance, the laboratory developed and studied two more original groups of anticancer compounds – nitrosoureidopropanediols and nitrosoureidodioxanes.

In 1984, the laboratory of pre-clinical trials, which was later renamed the laboratory of cancer chemoprevention, was established at the institute and headed by Professor V.A. Aleksandrov. The laboratory carried out preclinical studies of general and specific toxicity of several drugs. The team of the laboratory under the leadership of V.G. Bespalov and V.A. Aleksandrov conducted preclinical and clinical studies of a number of new drugs that could potentially be used for cancer chemoprevention.

The Laboratory of Cancer Chemoprevention and Oncopharmacology was established at at 2008 as a new structural unit. It included the specialists of the former division for chemistry, biology and toxicology of anticancer drugs after its restructuring. Vladimir G. Bespalov, D.M.Sc. was appointed its head.